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Message: [QUOTE="Huskee11, post: 4371747, member: 7171"] Nika is my favorite Husky, so take anything I have to say with a grain of salt. Nika has shot a little over 34% from three point range in both the 2020-2021 and 2021-2022 seasons. Last season, that percentage was better than the percentages for Christyn, Evina and Caroline. I recognize that those three probably took more contested three pointers, but still worth noting. As I recall, in both seasons Nika has started slow but picked it up from three point range as the season went along, perhaps as her playing time increased. So I think I would like to see her get off to a quicker start from deep in the coming season and if so, she might get the percentage up to around 38%. I would take that. It was clear to me from watching her warmup before games (I am a season ticket holder and always try to get there early) that she was working on her midrange game. Her movements were slow and deliberate, almost rehearsed, and it was clear that she had been following through on coaching she had received. She actually had some success from the midrange, not much but some, a little more than the previous year. I saw a video taken earlier this summer, I believe, where she was working on the midrange shots and she looked much more fluid, natural, and comfortable. I am hoping that she continues to progress in that area. Introducing the three pointer has been an overall positive for basketball, I think, but it has been a negative in terms of players (many, not all) developing a midrange game. I don`t know if that constant passing off the dribble drive is a European thing or not, but Anna Makurat was guilty of that as well. Nika is certainly capable of finishing at the hoop. I think it is a mindset more than anything else. Geno certainly doesn`t need my advice, but I hope he would tell her to not worry if she misses a layup, a midrange jumper, or a three pointer. Or all three. You are my point guard, and I want you to take those shots in the flow of the offense. If you miss, you miss. That may help free her up mentally to take those shots. On the defensive end, I think there will be nights when Nika finds herself in foul trouble. She will be aggressive, at times overly so, and on top of that the refs in WCBB call touch fouls on the perimeter all night while allowing felony assaults in the paint. We have to hope that she is able to stay on the floor in the biggest of games. I`m sure she is aware of this. My larger concern is that her treating every defensive possession as Armageddon - diving and crashing into things and people after loose balls, rushing from 20 feet away to try and take a charge under the hoop, etc. - is going to catch up to her at some point. I found myself cringing and swearing under my breath at her for throwing herself in harm`s way last season more often than I can count. Difficult to tell the bull in the shop to be careful around the china - but I think she needs to protect herself more while still being Nika. Something that (I think) has been overlooked in this thread but which I have observed - the offense works well when she is on the floor. Offenses can always get stagnant, but when she is on the floor there seems to be a lot of movement, and open shots are created. That is a benefit that goes beyond any deep dive analysis of her individual skills. Oh, and energy, there is that too, as in she has a whole lot of it and it is contagious. If everything goes true to form, I would expect her to play about 28-30 minutes a game at the point guard position with Azzi playing more minutes than that, and probably playing the point much of the time Nika is on the bench. [/QUOTE]

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